Through a Stranger's eyes
by Tuffet37
Summary: I don't know how I ended up on the streets of New York or even who I am, but I've learned how to fight for survival. They call me a monster, but I am not the only one in this city. What I am forces me to live alone in the shadows while I search for the answers to my questions. Kindness, however, was never something I expected to find.
1. A Beat Down

**_~Author's note: A what if based on the IDW origin. Rated T for mild violence and language. Disclaimer - I do not own the turtles or their world, I merely play in it._**

**_A great big thank you to Mordinette for her help as my beta/sounding board and another to Scribbledincrayon for her suggestions and help.~_**

The lid of the dumpster rested against the top of my shell as my hands vainly searched for anything remotely edible inside. The snapping of my coat against the bin made me glad my head was down here, keeping the worst of the cold from my face, and the drop in temperature meant I didn't have to hold my breath as I had been forced to do during the worst of the heat not that long ago.

Somewhere nearby I heard cries of distress that brought my head up out of the bin, but they weren't close enough that I would need to leave in fear of being discovered. Although those noises were fairly common in the city, a fact that I had discovered much to my disgust, they still made my fists ache to hit something. The higher tones, however, indicated that it was a female making them, and they were always the hardest to ignore for me. Some sick and twisted part of me insisted that it was my place to stop it.

A quick shake of my head before I dropped my sights back down into the bin in a desperate attempt to block out the sound. Another sudden gust of cold air forced me to wrap my coat tighter against my body. The thinness of it was ideal when it was warmer, but I feared soon it would be useless against the weather. Winter was coming, I had heard over and over again, and damn it all, if I was not looking forward to it in the least.

Another cry echoed through the night and it vaguely sounded like someone begging for help. A snarl erupted from me, even though I had found that nothing ever good came of my attempts to help those that were being hunted by their fellow humans. Several times I had intervened, but each one had only lead to more screaming, and cries of 'monster' that still rang in my ears for days.

Nope, I didn't need another reminder of just how different I was again. I don't know why I am this way, but that was just another mystery that I hadn't been able to solve. The other ones that nagged at me included where did I come from and were there others like me? Not to mention there was how in hell did I even end up here or how long had I been in this city - days or weeks before I lost my memory? I had enough to deal with just trying to stay alive, especially with the change of seasons that threatened to make my life a frigging hell.

An especially loud cry brought me out of my contemplation of the situation and the garbage I was staring at. Fuck it, I muttered to myself as I pushed away from where I had hoped to find something for dinner, unable to ignore the cries anymore. My fists clenched at my side as I stalked down the alley towards where the sounds were coming from. On the bright side, I could at least pummel a few assholes just for some variety in my night. Although my frame was bulkier than the majority of humans I had encountered, I found that I had the gift of moving quietly when I so chose to, which meant I typically always got the drop on my opponents if needed.

I stopped at what I found and I could feel my lips twisting in rage. Only two, no stealth required.

"Leave the woman alone or else," I said as my voice dropped down into a growl - a fucking warning: take it, asshole, because that's all you're gonna get; but I hoped they wouldn't take it.

One thug had the woman pinned against the wall with a hand over her mouth. The second had been busy rifling through her things from where he sat on the ground. Ass number one looked over at my words. The woman's dark hair flew about her head as she struggled to free herself.

"Back off, freak, or you'll be sorry."

She bit his hand and as soon as her mouth was free, she yelled, "Help me, please!"

Apparently, her panic had her more concerned about the assholes on her than my ugly mug. The guy slapped her hard enough to make her head rock backwards. "Shut it, whore! You'll get yours in a minute as soon as we deal with this jerk."

My blood roared in my ears and I snarled and swung at the man that had her pressed against the building and my fist connected with his face with a satisfying crunch, and he went down with a strangled cry. He didn't get back up - one down. The second man stood up with a scowl that marred his already ugly face - I should know having seen my reflection enough.

"You'll pay for that, freak."

My mouth twisted into something that resembled a grin before I pushed off from the ground and launched myself across the space towards my opponent. We connected with a loud smack and the human staggered under my weight, but managed to stay mostly upright even as he brought his fist down on my back. I nearly laughed as he cried out in pain and cradled his hand against his body.

"What the hell!"

"My turn," I said before I slammed my own fist into his jaw.

The human's eyes rolled back in his head and he dropped to the pavement. It was over before I was even warmed up, damn it. Now came the worst part. My shoulders straightened before I turned around and waited for the woman to cry out in fear or disgust or both, but she didn't say anything. Although night had fallen a few hours ago, there was still enough light from the street in our little spot that I could see her as she crawled along the filth of the alley and swept her hands in front of her in a wide arc as she searched for something. My eyes scanned the ground, trying to detect whatever she was desperate enough to find to crawl around in the filth of the alley for.

"Are you okay? What did you lose?" I finally asked; why I cared, I don't know. Just another part of me that was twisted as I offered aid to those who reviled me in the end.

"Yes, thank you, but I can't find my cane, though."

I glanced around and spotted a thin white stick about five feet in front of her - oh fuck - and my eyes widened when it dawned on me what it was that she had been trying to find. Using the tip of my foot, I rolled the stick towards her. She might not be able to see how different I was, but if she touched me, she surely would be able to feel it. It bumped into her hand and her fingers clutched the cane before she pushed herself upright. She tapped it around her for a moment.

"My groceries? I don't suppose they survived somehow?"

A tilt of my head to look around her, and my gaze found the torn bag and its contents spilled around the area.

"Yeah," I said as I brushed past her. "The bag is useless, though. I don't suppose you have another one handy?"

"Damn it. I hate to impose on you after you just saved me-"

Before I realized what I was doing, I had waved her off with one hand, but the ridiculousness of that action had me sighing as I bent down and gathered up her items for her instead.

"I got it," I said and paused for a moment as I looked out towards the street. It wasn't late enough for the traffic to be almost non-existent.

"Lady, most people, uh, don't take my appearance well. It's best if I just leave you at the edge of the alley."

That had her tilting her head as she stood still. "I have a back entrance to my apartment - a perk for being in the basement, you might say. In fact, that was where I was headed when they attacked me; otherwise, I try and avoid the alleyways."

"Fine. Lead on, lady."

She gave me a smile. Well, I assumed it was directed at me anyway, even though it seemed to be aimed over my shoulder.

"Thank you, uh. If you tell me your name, I could thank you properly."

"Don't know it," I said under my breath. That was a first; never had someone asked me my name. Most times, they were happy to give me one - one I didn't like.

A soft gasp let me know that she had heard me.

"Surely there is some organization that can help you-"

I grunted instead of just laughing in her face. "Remember when I said that people don't take kindly to my appearance? Freak or monster - you take your pick. So, no, there is nowhere I can go for help. Just lead the way and I'll be out of your hair soon enough."

Her cane clacked against the ground and the nearest wall and after a few minutes of circling, she finally stopped. "I'm a little turned around after the attack; which way towards the street?"

I juggled a loaf of bread still in its bakery paper and the fresh smell of it made my mouth water and my stomach growl, but maintaining my grip on it with one hand and one on her shoulder, I managed to point her towards the street. She gave me another smile before she spun on her heel and headed deeper into the shadows of the alley. The dull thud of my foot connecting with the two guys on the ground brought a smile to my face as I passed over them. It's the little things, I learned, you have to enjoy. The sound of her counting under her breath as she moved through the alley was nearly drowned out by the wind until she finally stopped at a small flight of stairs that led down to a door. I spun around to make sure the chumps were still down; they didn't need to see where she lived. They were. When I turned back, she stood in front of a door and pulled a key out from around her neck before unlocking the door. She stepped inside and I steeled myself - for what, I wasn't sure, but I followed her inside. The door closed behind me and the small amount of light from outside dwindled down to nothing.

"Uh, I've got good night vision, but not pitch black."

"Oh, I'm sorry! Hang on, let me get the switch."

The bright light had me blinking rapidly as I tried to clear my eyes of the spots that half blinded me. The space was small but tidy, of course I hadn't peeped into too many windows so, as far as I knew, I only had a limited experience with indoor living. A couch and a TV stood near the front door, and at the other end of the room there was a small table next to the kitchen area.

With her groceries still cradled in my arms, I walked over to the counter and gently placed the items down on it. She joined me, and fearing that she might accidentally touch me and ruin this moment, I took a step away.

"Thank you so much."

"No problem, lady. I'll just be going."

"Please, I want to thank you somehow. What about dinner?"

At my silence, she gave me another smile. Apparently, she was one of those happy people; didn't think New York had many of those. "I heard your stomach growling. I promise I'm a pretty good cook, well, when I don't screw up reading the instructions."

The warmth of the room was a welcome change to the cold of the streets, and a hot meal, well, that was not something to be thrown away lightly.

"Yeah, I'd like that."

"Great! I'm glad I could do something for you after all you've done for me. I guess you sleep on the streets?"

I grunted an acknowledgement and sat down at the table while she began putting up her groceries.

"You are welcome to take a shower. I have a washer and dryer in there as well that you can use."

"You saying I smell?" A snarl left my lips as I pushed away from the table. I really didn't need to be told that perhaps I was a little ripe; I knew it and just couldn't do too much about it.

My eyes watched her chest lift and fall as she breathed deeply. "No, I just thought you might like a chance to get clean since you say you don't go to the shelters."

"Oh. Yeah, that would be nice then."


	2. A Cleansing

The water ran nearly hot enough to scald my flesh, but the heat seemed just to sink into my shell and bones. I figured in about a month I would be remembering this shower with a great deal of fondness. And not just because for the first time a rescue I had done had ended on a positive note; hell, dinner and a proper cleaning had me feeling like I had won some lottery or something.

The washing machine thumped along in the small room as my coat and sweats got a thorough cleaning even as I took care of my body. When the water began to cool, I reluctantly shut it off. The oversized towel on a nearby rack had me losing myself in the luxurious feel of softness against my skin as I rubbed myself dry. The last time I had managed something even remotely like this was back in the summer when it had rained and I had stood out in it scrubbing as best as I could at the grime that had coated me from the heat. But as soon as the temperature dropped outside, trying to keep clean didn't seem like something I wanted to do; not unless I wanted to freeze my tail off anyway.

A small laundry bin stood next to the washer and I dropped the towel there. I knew she couldn't see me, but still it felt odd to be unclothed around her even though my shell covered me well enough. Humans, I had found, still considered me naked and to be honest, it was easier to hide that thing that stood out about me in order to keep them from asking too many questions. Questions were bad, I had discovered, since it tended to be followed by officials looking into the reports of a supposed giant, walking, talking turtle.

I opened the door and from here, I could see the woman singing softly to herself while she cooked. I paused in the doorway and studied her. Her dark hair only reached her shoulders and her eyes were clear and green, but one cheek had already begun to discolor where that ass had hit her. Seeing the evidence of their work so clearly on her, however, made me want to go back out there and see if they were still there so I could give them a few more reminders of why they should keep their fists to themselves. The scars that criss-crossed her face, however, were clearly older and I wondered if that was why she couldn't see. A topic better left untouched. After my own reception, I could imagine what hers had been, but I didn't think her face was that bad. However, her disability meant that she was another victim in this city that always seemed to have more than enough predators looking for an easy mark.

I stepped out of the doorway and walked towards the little kitchen that she worked in. Some happy tune played on a nearby radio and that was what she was singing to - not well, but hey, who was I to judge. But the smells, well, they had my stomach bitching again about how little I had found lately to fill it.

She must have heard me because she stopped mid-note.

"Oh, have a nice shower?"

"Yeah, thanks again. Hard to get clean as it gets colder."

She nodded. "I hope you like pasta-"

"Lady, I've been getting dinner out of garbage cans, pretty much anything will be an improvement."

She laughed and the sound brought a real smile to my face. This whole day was turning into one giant new thing; kindness from a stranger in a city that so far had shown me it had very little of that for me.

"Oh good, those are the best people to cook for: ones with low expectations."

Before I realized it, my foot was tapping along with the music and I put one hand on my leg in order to make it stop. Sitting idle was not something I did a lot of; most nights were spent scavenging for anything edible and lately trying to stay warm and hidden away from the gangs that sometimes roamed the night. The days were only marginally better, since at least it was usually warmer then.

"Can I, uh, give you a hand or something?"

"You could set the table; the dishes are in that cabinet next to the fridge."

I leaped at the chance to do something. Her cabinets were neat, freaky neat in fact, but I supposed she needed to have them precise if she didn't want to lose or break stuff. I grabbed the plates and glasses and brought them to the table. A small napkin holder sat in the middle of it and I placed one beside each plate. Who knew my days spent looking through whatever magazines I had found would be of use, but hey, I learned how a table should be set.

"Silverware?"

"In the top drawer by the fridge."

I found a plastic organizer inside the drawer and each type of silverware nestled in its own little spot. I wasn't sure what we might need, so I grabbed forks, spoons, and knives. She moved unerringly towards the table with a large salad bowl in her hands.

"Don't ya need your cane to get around?" I asked as I watched her move confidently about.

She shook her head with another smile. "So long as no one moves furniture around, I've got my place memorized."

I grunted as a reply and eyed the salad with a little trepidation. I'd been hoping for something a little meatier.

"Ya know some people like a little meat in their diet."

"Salads are good for you, and don't worry, my baked ziti is made with meat sauce."

She smiled at me and kept on working. The bread that had tormented me earlier was brought over along with a large knife to the table.

"Would you mind cutting the bread? My pieces are sometimes a little - erratic."

I snorted a laugh. That was probably an understatement. One hand gripped the bread and with the other I sliced through it with the knife. Each piece fell neatly beside the now shrinking loaf. I hadn't handled a knife before that I could ever remember, but somehow it felt right in my hands. Before I realized what I was doing, I had the blade dancing between my fingers in an intricate pattern. The sight startled me badly enough that I fumbled the blade and it clattered to the table.

"Are you okay?"

"Yea, just dropped the knife is all," I said and hoped she couldn't hear the tremor in my voice.

Who the hell was I that knife twirling was something I could do instinctively? I shook my head and willed something, anything, to pop into my brain about who I was, but nothing did, it never did.

"There is a pitcher of water in the fridge, would you mind pouring us some while I get the ziti out?"

"Sure."

Upon opening the door to it, I found it just as ruthlessly organized as the cabinets. My eyes glanced over and found her carefully reaching into the oven for a large dish.

"Hey, why don't you let me do that?"

She shook her head. "I can do it. I just have to remember the distances. I've only burned myself a few dozen times, so I'm hoping the knowledge sinks in soon."

I shrugged and let her do her thing while I filled our glasses and placed the pitcher back exactly where I found it. The smell from the dish she carried to the table had my stomach rumbling again. I could feel the heat rushing to my cheeks at her soft laugh.

"I hope you like it."

"Smells good," I said and hoped I didn't sound too desperate.

Her grasping hand quickly found the other chair and she pulled it out. "My name is Sara, and rather than say hey you or something, how about you give yourself a name until you remember your real one?"

One hand idly rubbed along the back of my neck. A name - was she serious? I had a feeling that whatever name that popped into my head would sound shitty to me. What in hell would you call a giant turtle? Shelly? Yeah, I had heard that one before, still pissed me off, but at least I got to clobber the guy that came up with that little gem.

"Dunno," I said and carefully filled my plate with the pasta.

"Might I make a suggestion?"

"Why not."

"Michael."

"Huh, okay. My voice remind you of someone you knew with that name?"

She grinned. "Nope, I was thinking of the archangel."

I barked out a harsh laugh. "Lady, I'm so far from an angel, it ain't even funny."

"It's Sara. In the stories he was a warrior and protector, and since you came to my aid when others didn't, well, it just seems fitting to me."

"Well, uh, thanks," I said as I felt my cheeks heat up again, and I was grateful she couldn't see how her words affected me. I wasn't sure how I ended up here or how I deserved it, but at least I would get a hot meal before having to return to the cesspool of the streets.

I turned my eyes down to the plate of steaming food in front of me. This was safe to think about; anything more was sure to be a disappointment. He and I were old friends and he always showed up around whatever corner I looked it seemed.

Scooping up a forkful, I put it in my mouth, and I nearly wept at the taste. I forced my hand to put my fork down while I chewed in order to slow down my pace because if I didn't, well, I knew the consequences. I still kicked myself over that one night where I had found nearly an entire pizza and ate it too fast; I'd learned my lesson and would not be repeating that mistake again.

"It's really good, Sara," I said softly.

"Thank you! I'm glad you liked it. I made cookies earlier, so we have those to look forward to after dinner."

Almost of its own accord, my hand lifted another forkful into my mouth and while I chewed, I wondered how many cookies I could stuff in my pockets when I left. With no immediate need to find dinner tonight, perhaps I could spend some time trying to find a clue on who I was and why I couldn't remember anything.

"They say we might get the first snow of the season tonight."

That had my head popping up from staring at my plate.

"Fuck. So much for my run of good luck tonight," I muttered with a sigh before taking another bite.

"You're welcome to use my couch for the night, if you like."

The mouthful of pasta caught in my throat and I gasped and coughed until I could swallow it down and speak again.

"What in hell are you thinking? You don't know me! You heard what those guys called me; there is a reason for it!"

She had the audacity to smile at me.

"That is why," she said and jabbed her fork in my general direction. Her aim was better than I expected. "You came to my aid. You never once asked for a reward. You could have taken off with my groceries or robbed me, but you didn't! You even carried my things back to my place for me. You looked out for me even though you didn't know me. As for name calling, I know something about that as well." She ticked off every point with another wave of her fork.

"Yeah, but I doubt you deserved it. I'm not human." My eyes narrowed as I waited for her to scream and yell at me to leave.

Her eyes narrowed right back at me. I knew she was a fighter from the alley, and now her temper was being directed at me. Oddly enough, I found I liked it.

"I've been told that I would make an excellent Bride of Frankenstein, and bonus, I don't even need any special makeup! As far as I can tell, the only monsters I've met today are the two asses you thrashed out in the alley! And for god's sake, you sound like every other New Yorker I've ever met in this city."

My laugh was genuine at that last comment; it was nice to know I had succeeded in sounding like I belonged even if I didn't look it. "You got me there. Living on the streets, you tend to pick it up fast."

"I thought all it took was liberal use of swears and especially the F-bomb."

"Huh? What in hell is an F-bomb?"

"You know, fuck," she said before ducking her head. "I mean, people use it for any part of a sentence, I've noticed."

The faint pink to her cheeks had my lips curling into a grin. "Didn't grow up here, I take it?"

Her head shook vigorously. "No, my family moved here about five years ago."

"Why the hell aren't you living with them then?" My voice deepened in anger at the thought that her family left her unprotected against the monsters in the city.

My eyes flicked up at her silence and I noticed the moisture that gathered in her eyes and I knew I had hit on something bad.

"They died," she said in a raspy whisper.

"Aw, crap, I'm sorry."

Her hand rubbed fiercely at her eyes. "It's okay. We were in a car accident, I was the only one that survived, and I just decided to stay."

A sigh escaped me as I fought an inner battle. Snow would definitely make my plan of trying to hunt down some clue about my existence difficult. A night inside with someone to talk to sounded better than outside the longer I sat here. My eyes searched Sara's face as she waited for me to say something, but I found no hint of pity or fear. Perhaps she was lonely as well.

"Thank you, Sara. I'd like that," I said in a voice that was gruffer than I had intended.

Her smile warmed something inside me, but I pushed that thought down. Just accept the now. Don't look past that.

**_~Author's note - a big thank you to Mordinette for all her help as my beta and another to Scribbledincrayon for her suggestions. Thanks ladies! And a thank you to the readers, I'm happy that you are enjoying this so far!~_**


	3. Inside to Outside

The mound of little white cookies with the red center seemed to stare at me. I wasn't sure what they were and I wasn't sure I wanted to try them. You'd think after picking food out of bins to eat I wouldn't be so picky, but with a full stomach, I felt no compulsion to try anything that seemed too different.

Sara moved about the kitchen, cleaning up. She had refused my help, saying there wasn't enough room for both of us, and instead had plopped the plate of cookies down in front of me.

"So, um, what kind of cookies are these?"

"Raspberry tartlets. Try one."

My eyes drifted down to the plate again. I was pretty sure I didn't want to put anything called a tartlet in my mouth, on principle at least.

"Maybe later. I'm pretty full -"

"You're afraid to try them," she said with a laugh.

"Am not. The name just sounds _wrong._"

"You are such a guy! Just try one."

"Fine," I grumbled before I popped one into my mouth. The sweet, fruity taste had me moaning while I chewed. As soon as I swallowed it down, I grabbed another.

"Fuck! These things are good!"

"Told you so. There, the dishes are done. Want to watch a movie?"

That had me eyeing her; well, not that she could tell. At my silence, I heard her sigh.

"They are all from before I lost my eyesight. I've seen them years ago, so I can picture the scene while I listen to them."

"Sure then," I said as I snagged a handful of cookies to bring with me as I followed her over to the sofa.

She pulled out a handful of cases that had been sitting next to the TV and held them out to me. Cookies stuffed into my mouth, I took them from her, unsure what she wanted, even as I hastily chewed and swallowed them down.

"Pick one," she finally said.

My eyes glanced down at the items and found colorful pictures and words emblazoned on each of them.

"Uh, I don't know -"

Her head shook as she interrupted me. "Like I said, these were mine from before and my favorites, so just grab one that looks interesting to you."

Not bothering to look at them again, I thrust one back at her. The others I placed down on the little table next to the sofa and I lowered myself down onto it. A soft sigh escaped me at the feeling of soft and warm material under me. It was a definite improvement over cement or bags of garbage for a seat that I usually had to use. I let myself sink into it as I felt my body relax. The music washed over me and my warm belly full of food had my eyelids drooping before I realized it.

Sometime later, I shifted and the warmth that had been draped over me fell off and I blearily stuck a hand out to find it and drag it back over me. My fingers snagged the edge of it and I pulled it back up as I nestled my head back into my pillow. That was enough to jolt my brain awake while my heart seized in terror. I shot up off the sofa and glanced around the room. The last thing I remembered was the sound of music, so the pillow and blanket happened sometime after that. She had to have touched me at some point. Had she called someone when she discovered how different I was? Were people coming for me even now? Why hadn't I woken up! On the streets, the littlest noise brought me awake; apparently, too much good food had me weak.

A small lamp over the stove provided me with enough light to see that I was still in Sara's apartment and that the time on the radio showed it to be early morning and hours had passed since I last remembered being awake. My breath left me in one long sigh and my heart started to slow from the pounding rate it had been at just a moment ago. If she had called someone, they would have been here already. She hadn't woken me and made me leave, hell, she hadn't even cried out in fright after touching me. So many thoughts swirled through my brain that I knew I would never fall back asleep; sadly, I was wide awake now. I know humans often relied on coffee to get going in the morning, but I found a jolt of fear was just as effective. My clothes were dry, so I figured I could slip them back on and go back out where I belonged, but it seemed wrong just to leave without thanking Sara again. Especially since I knew she hadn't freaked over my differences when she had lain the blanket over me and pushed a pillow under my head.

Not wanting to wake her, I sprawled back onto the sofa. Tonight had been more sleep than I normally got in one sitting and my stomach didn't feel like it was trying to eat itself, so I felt pretty damn good. Perhaps I'd go back to that alley I woke up in. I've been back before, but maybe this time I'd find something I missed. The creak of a door had me bolting upright again. The bedroom door pushed open and I watched as Sara glided out of her room and over to the bathroom. I waited until she crept back out before I let out a small cough.

"Good morning."

Her body jerked a little at the sound of my voice.

"Oh, good morning. I'm sorry I woke you."

A soft laugh left my lips as I shook my head. "No, I woke up a few minutes ago when I lost the blanket you left me. Thanks for that and the pillow."

"You're welcome. I couldn't believe you started to snore minutes after the movie started."

"Uh, sorry about that. I, uh, thanks for not screaming."

Her laughter rang through the room. "Why on earth would I scream because you snored?"

My eyes narrowed as I watched her. Was she being deliberately dense?

"Because you had to have noticed I'm not like you when you gave me those things," I said and I couldn't stop my words from sounding defensive.

"Michael, I got up when you started to snore to get you a blanket and pillow. When I got back, I discovered you were pretty much flat across the couch based on the location of said snoring so I draped the blanket over you and I started to shove the pillow under your head and left. I didn't touch you. I know you are sensitive about your differences and I totally understand that."

"Oh, um, sorry then. I just -"

"I get it," she said and her words rang with the truth of that statement. "Consider this a judgment free apartment."

I snorted a soft laugh. She made it sound like I would be welcomed back, or maybe that was that just my own hope rearing its ugly head again?

"Thanks, uh, for everything. I haven't eaten or slept like that since I awoke what seems like years ago."

"I enjoyed it," she said and the warmth of her smile let me know she meant it. "Shall we see how bad the weather is?"

I groaned. "Wouldn't you rather go back to bed?"

Her steps brought her to the TV stand and her fingers danced across the surface as she hunted for the remote. As soon as they touched it, she grasped it in her hand and sat on the other end of the sofa just as she had done last night.

"I typically don't sleep all night either. Because I'm blind, my brain doesn't get the signals it should on when I should be sleeping. Insomnia is the result."

"Well, that sucks. For me, I can't afford to sleep too long in one place."

"Now that truly sucks," she said as she flicked on the set.

"That it does."

It didn't take her long to find a news station and the reporters delighted in telling their viewers how bad traffic was due to the weather as the snow had lingered longer than originally anticipated. From the pictures, I could see that several inches coated the sidewalks and streets of New York as the crews worked to clear the main roads. My head hit the back of the sofa with a loud groan as I contemplated how much my life was going to suck.

"That bad?"

"Yeah."

"I, uh, didn't hear you take off any shoes last night."

"Don't got any. My feet are pretty tough."

"Tough enough that wading through snow won't bother you?"

My mouth opened and closed as I thought about that. "Uh, yeah, maybe not."

"What time is it now?"

My eyes flicked over to the clock. "Almost five."

"I have a storage unit nearby where a lot of my family's stuff sits. There may be some things of my Dad's in there-"

My head snapped towards her. "I can't take your -"

She shook her head and the smile on her face was wistful. "He would have been happy to give something to the person who came to my defense. Please. I want to help."

"You've already done so much for me."

"You and I both know those guys weren't going to stop with just robbing me. You saved me, Michael." I couldn't help but notice the small tremor that coursed through her body and I knew she was right about that. My eyes watched as she breathed in and out a few times in order to regain her composure before she spoke again. "These things have been sitting in storage and if you can use them, then I'm delighted to give them to you."

"I guess all I can say is thanks, again."

Her smile lit her face up and I found my lips curling into a smile right along with her.

"I assume you would rather walk the streets in the dark and with the weather keeping people off the streets?"

"Yeah, that would be best."

"Come on, if we hurry, we can be there and back before the sun comes up in a few hours."

Back? That - she couldn't possibly mean that. Ignoring the hope that threatened to flicker to life once more, I turned my attention to donning my clothes. That was safe. My hoodie slipped over my head and I drew my threadbare coat over my shoulders. Finding clothes that would go over my shell had been a little problematic and I wasn't proud I had been forced to remove them from a guy who hadn't made it through the night, but at least I had nothing to do with his death.

Sara stood in front of a small closet next to the door we came in last night. Of course, she had bundled up enough that there wasn't that much of her exposed to actually tell it was her. She stepped back and with a gloved hand gestured towards the opening.

"See if you can find something you can use in there."

I took a few steps closer and peered into the space. My lips curved into a smile. Organization didn't exist in the closet.

"Hmm, I'd be surprised to find anything in here since it's so messy," I said, trying to hide my laughter. The chaos of it made me feel less out of place. After all, my own life was chock full of it on a regular basis.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I need to get some bins to organize it. Speaking of that," she said and held up her hands. "Do these match?"

My eyes flicked over at her. "Well, they look the same, but I'm not sure anything will match that neon green scarf you are wearing."

Her chuckles warmed me and I turned back to the closet. I drew out a dark blue scarf as it was the most muted color I could find. However, my eyes glanced between a few of the gloves in the space and then back to my own hands. No way were my much larger three fingers were ever going to fit into those.

"I took a scarf, but your gloves are never going to fit on my hands."

"I think you should take the pink one in there."

"Gee, it would clash with my coat, but thanks," I replied dryly.

Her laugh was muffled as she snagged a small key chain and the single key on a chain that I knew was the key to her place. Her cane clattered along until it hit the first of the snow just past her door. I followed behind her and scooted past her so she could lock the door behind us. The shock of the icy, cold snow on my feet had me hissing in displeasure. Winter was most assuredly not going to be fun.

_**~A great big thank you to Mordinette for all her help as my beta and another to Scribbledincrayon for her suggestions. Thanks, ladies! And a thank you to the readers, happy you are enjoying this so far.~**_


	4. Possessions

My scarf was wrapped around my head several times and I pulled it up until it rode just under my eyes. The snow fell down around us in a heavy cloud and it muted the sounds of the city. If not for having half-frozen feet, it might have been nice.

"I used to love watching the snow come down," Sara said, her scarf muffling her voice.

Her steps slowed down as her cane kept catching in piles of the heavy snow. My own speed lessened to match hers. Along the way, I made sure to check every shadow and dark corner for surprises that might be waiting for us.

"I like how it makes the city quieter."

As we neared the street, my body stiffened. This was dangerous territory out here as far as I was concerned, and not somewhere I ever went lightly.

"Michael, I'm going to need you to be my eyes in order to get across the road rather than walking all the way down to the cross-walk."

"Of course. What do you need me to do?"

"Give me your elbow. When it's clear, pick a path across for us."

She held out her left hand and I moved around to that side of her and pushed my elbow into her palm. Her fingers squeezed around my arm as she gripped it tightly. I took a step forward and made sure to keep that arm steady for her. She shuffled a little closer to me before matching my step. Even though we were both bundled against the weather, having someone so close to me without violence involved seemed _different._

At the edge of the street, I stopped and looked carefully before taking a step off the curb. This street hadn't been cleared yet and only a few people walked with their heads down along the sidewalks. I led her quickly across until we approached the lip of the sidewalk.

"Curb coming up."

"Just step up. I can feel the shift in your body as you move."

"Oh. That makes sense."

My feet shuffled to a stop once we gained the sidewalk and I turned my head towards her.

"Which way now?"

"Go right. It's called Secure Plus and should be about a block down the street."

A street light stood next to the sign for the place and it touted the fact that there was twenty-four hour access and single floor units. I strode off towards that beacon. A movement across the street caught my eye and I stiffened for a moment as I assessed the threat. If Sara felt my muscles bunch under her hand, she didn't say anything, but the breath I had been holding was released. Two people walked across the street from us and they were just as bundled up as Sara and I. As I watched them, I realized that for once I could pass as 'normal' under these conditions.

Fear of discovery, of being noticed, was a constant thing and it usually kept my head down, but now I could take the time to really look about me. My eyes peered into darkened store windows, not afraid of my reflection being seen by anyone since all they would see was a heavily bundled up person. My hands were in my pockets and I had a woman on my arm. I looked like I belonged and it had my thoughts whirling into dangerous territory.

The snow flickered in the lamplight as we approached the storage place. I stopped and gazed about, but the couple from earlier were far away from us now.

"We're here. What now?"

"Go to the gate. I need to input the access code and then we can head to my unit." Her words were muffled by her scarf, but we were close enough together that I heard her.

It only took a moment for me to spot the panel she needed to get to and I set off towards it. I angled us such that she would be directly in front of it and stopped once more.

"It's right in front of you, Sara."

Her hand fell off my arm and groped for the panel. Using her teeth, she stripped off that glove and felt along the keypad and after a moment she pushed a series of numbers. My eyes searched for what trick she used to know where the numbers were, but then I noticed that there were faint bumps on every button. No wonder she used this place. The gate clicked open and her gloveless hand latched onto my arm once more. The sight of her glove dangling between her teeth had me chuckling, and I carefully plucked it out of her mouth and tucked it into my pocket.

"I'll hold onto it for you."

"Thanks. It didn't taste real good."

I snorted a soft laugh. "I bet I can give you a whole long list of stuff that tastes worse."

Her laughter had me smiling into my scarf. "I am so not taking that bet."

The gate swung open and it pushed a pile of snow in front of it as we walked through.

"Go to the second row of units and it's the fifth one on the right," she said before I could ask.

Back here, away from the street, it was even quieter. The faint sounds of trucks on other streets could be heard, but mostly it was the sound of our breath and the shuffling of our feet in the snow that filled my ears. My steps were sure as I led us to her unit and I stopped us in front of a padlock on a large roll up door.

"We are in front of the door with a lock on it."

The loss of her hand on my arm should have been a relief, but I found I sort of missed it. I shook my head, trying to scatter the dangerous thoughts that were gathering in there. I already had too much on my plate to dwell on what ifs. When my eyes focused once more, Sara already had the door unlocked. I stepped forward and lifted the gate. The light from the complex allowed me to see well enough inside the dark room to spot the switch on the wall. I reached over and flicked it up and an overhead light illuminated the area. A few pieces of furniture were stacked about, but mostly there were boxes, lots of them.

"The light is on. What are we looking for?"

Sara's cane clicked as she moved towards the right side of the room.

"I can't remember if the lawyer said things were identified by whom it belonged to, or where it came from."

I moved to the first stack and discovered that they all had been labeled neatly in thick, dark letters. Well, that would make it a little easier. My eyes glanced over as I broke down the first stack to find Sara wandering about the space, running her ungloved hand along the pieces of furniture.

"Hey, do you want your glove back?"

"Sure."

I put down the box I had just pulled down and wove through the stacks until I stood in front of Sara. I didn't dare touch her hand with mine so I lifted her arm at the elbow and dropped the glove into her waiting hand. Her small sigh at my obvious avoidance of touching her hand had me flinching a little. It was better for both of us this way, even though a part of me wanted to see if she could accept me for what I was. However, a different part of me was selfish and didn't want to take a chance on losing what was quickly becoming, if nothing else, an ally. Glove delivered, I returned to the box I had just pulled down.

The second pile of cartons finally yielded a possibility. The box said Joshua Russell. I paused and glanced up to spot Sara sitting on an ornate chair with her feet propped up on a stack of cartons.

"Joshua? Was he your father?"

"Yeah. You find a box?"

"Yep. Do you want to -"

"No, you open it and see if there is anything you can use in it."

I ripped the tape off and opened it up. Suits of various colors were neatly folded on top. Pulling those out, I dug deeper in. Below were dress shirts, also not useful, at least to me. I carefully returned everything in the box and moved on. My search seemed to be futile as nothing of use had been found yet and my feet were quickly becoming like blocks of ice. I found another carton labeled with her father's name and pulled the tape off in one long rip. My lips curved into a smile at what lay on top.

"Yes!"

"What?" Sara said as she climbed to her feet.

"Did your dad have a heavy jacket that was kind of long?"

"Oh! You found his winter trench coat! He loved that thing, said it made him feel like a private eye."

I pulled it out. The sheer weight of it told me that it would be a helluva lot warmer than my current one, and I stripped it off and hoped that my string of good luck would hold and it would fit. It slid easily across my shoulders and fell just past my knees. The thick lining blocked the cold that surrounded us and I felt more comfortable than I had since we left Sara's place. I pulled it closed and used the belt to hold it together.

"So?"

"It's perfect."

"Good! Find anything else?"

"Still gotta go through the rest of the box. I had to get the coat on first."

My attention turned back to the carton that had given me one good thing and hoped I could find more. Jackets of all sorts had lain below the one I was wearing, and next up were hats and other outerwear. I dug through it and finally found a pair of mittens, but one look at them and I knew my hands were never going into them. I dropped them back down and dug down to the shoes just underneath. Winter boots, something wide enough to stuff my feet into, that was really the last thing I absolutely needed. Most were dress shoes of various colors and styles, and I burrowed through them until my fingers touched something heavier. I grabbed hold of it and pulled out my prize. A soft laugh left me as I gazed on a heavy winter boot. I dove back into the carton, looking for its twin, and after some digging I finally found it. Even better, they were the type you pulled on.

I shoved first one foot in and then the other. Her father may have had smaller hands than me, but luckily for me, his feet had been bigger. They were a little too long, but were wide enough, which was the more important thing. My feet were still cold when I put them on, but at least they had dried out from our time in her unit so I left them on for our walk back.

"I took a pair of boots. Thanks, and my feet really thank you."

Sara laughed. "Good. Let's go home. How do waffles sound for breakfast?"

"You cooked last night. Why not just eat the leftovers?" I asked as I moved to her side. It seemed like a waste of time to make something new; hell, I normally couldn't afford to go hunting food during the day. I couldn't risk being seen, which is why I turned to studying the magazines I had scavenged during the night. They helped to distract me from my hunger while I waited for the sun to go down.

She must have felt the brush of me next to her, because she quickly latched onto my arm, and once more, I turned us towards the exit so we could begin our journey back to her place.

"That was dinner. Besides, I have leftover waffle batter from yesterday's breakfast. Cooking is sort of therapeutic for me, and it's nice to have someone to share it with."

"Never had those before, but they sound good."

Her snort of laughter had me smiling. "I should have told you they were waffle tartlets just to see what you would say."

"I'd have to tell you that the name was just wrong," I replied with my own laugh.

Outside the storage unit, the snow tapered off to just a few flakes that drifted down. Our trip back to the apartment, at least for me, would be warmer.

_**~Another thank you to Mordinette for all her help as my beta and another to Scribbledincrayon for her suggestions. Thanks, Ladies! Another thank you to the readers, I'm happy you are enjoying this!~**_


	5. Confessions

My feet strode through the piles of snow, never slipping even a little. These boots were perfect. My sudden change in fortune had my spirits higher than they had ever been.

"So, how do you feel about quiche?"

"What in hell is that?" I asked.

"It's a dish made with custard and usually meats, cheeses, and vegetables in it."

"That sounds - disgusting," I said. I glanced over at her and saw the way her eyes were crinkling, and my own narrowed. "You're making this shit up, aren't you?"

Her laughter had me shaking my head.

"No, it's real. I need to look up some of the most outlandish foods I can find and make you try them."

I snorted. "Good luck with that one."

My feet turned us down the alley that led to her apartment and I was still chuckling when the skin along the back of my neck began to twitch. I twisted around to see who was coming up behind us even as I shoved Sara behind me. Swearing under my breath, I quickly pulled off my coat and scarf before I tossed them towards Sara.

"What the -" she exclaimed at my treatment of her.

"Stay down," I growled out as I watched the two figures loom out of the shadows towards us.

They each carried a large wooden bat in their hands. If they thought that would frighten me off, they were wrong - dead wrong.

"We have a score to settle with you two, freak," the one on the right said.

They wore some sort of knit hat that was pulled down over their faces with holes cut out for the eyes, nose, and mouth, so I couldn't tell which one was which from yesterday.

"Your grudge is with me. Leave her alone," I said even as I let my rage surge up inside of me.

"After we finish you off, she'll be getting hers," the second one stated and he punctuated his words with a smack of his bat against his hand.

"Run," I ordered Sara. I prayed she would listen to me.

The scramble of movement behind me had the guy on the right trying to go around me. I moved up and dodged his first swing and before he recovered, I grabbed the bat in my own hands. From the corner of my eye, I saw his buddy close in on us, as he took a swing at me. At least that meant Sara was safe for the moment. I shifted and took the hit on my shell while I grappled with the other guy. My breath left me in a grunt of air at the impact and the noise echoed dully around us.

I needed to get the guy in front of me out of the picture and quickly. I didn't know how many hits my shell could take before it cracked and I didn't want to find out. The guy changed his stance as he tried to wrest his bat free, and it put his knee in a perfect position for me. Seizing the opportunity, I lifted one foot and slammed my heel just so on his kneecap. I heard the crack and pop just before he howled in agony and collapsed to the ground, his one leg useless. The bat came free and I whirled to face the second guy, my weapon held in front of me.

"You're gonna pay for that," the man growled out.

He raised his bat high overhead, leaving his middle open. That was all I needed. I darted in and slammed the blunt end of my weapon into the middle of his chest. His breath left him in a whoosh and he gasped as he struggled to breathe. I could have crushed his skull with a swing, but instead I only 'tapped' him hard enough to bring him low. I turned and gave his friend the same treatment. Couldn't have them wandering off before Sara could get the cops here, and it had the added bonus of shutting him up. Grasping the bat with my hoodie, I walked over to where my things lay in the snow and carefully wiped it down with my scarf. I had no idea if I had fingerprints, but I knew I didn't want to take a chance of leaving behind any evidence of my existence. I lobbed it underhanded back at the guy who had it first and grinned when it clunked him in the head. Oops.

Sara stood in her doorway with her face turned towards where the fight had been. I walked slowly to her side. Now that the fight had ended, my back was beginning to ache.

"Go inside and call the cops. Make sure you tell them that you heard the attackers hitting their hand with something wooden. And that someone came to your aid so you could go get help. Maybe then these two assholes will be removed from the street for more than a few days."

"Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. I'll wait nearby until they leave."

She nodded and ducked inside the apartment. I looked around for somewhere I could wait it out. The alley was just too small for me to remain in since there were few places to hide, but a fire escape ladder caught my eye. I'd go up. I slid my jacket on and wrapped the scarf around my head again before I walked slowly towards the ladder. A grunt left me as I leaped up to catch the bottom rung, but I caught it despite the pulling in my back. I hauled myself up even as the muscles began to bitch at this new activity. Once I was up on it, though, it was easy to gain access to the roof.

By the time the sound of a siren came down the street, the falling snow had done its job and only the most recent tracks were even partially visible. No odd two toed footprints to call attention to the fact that something non-human had walked out of Sara's place.

I peered over the roof edge as I lay prone on the roof. My coat protected me from the worst of the snow around me at least. The two chumps had just started to come around when the cops plowed through the snow to get to them. I had been keeping an eye on them. And watching the cops put cuffs on them, now that brought a smile to my face.

"We were attacked. I tell you!" Mister Kneecap declared.

"Yeah, yeah. By a blind woman, right?" one of the cops asked.

"Yes! I mean, no, it was the guy with her. He was an ugly bastard!"

As I watched the scene play out, I saw Sara come out.

"Officers?" she asked.

"Over here, ma'am."

Her cane led the way as she pushed through the snow. A sigh left my lips; the crazy woman was out in this weather without a jacket.

"Ma'am, you said someone came to your aid?" a woman cop asked.

"Yes, I don't know who he was, but he is a hero. He got between me and my attackers and told me to run, so I went to my apartment and called it in."

"Well, he isn't here now."

"Maybe he went to his place to call it in as well."

I watched as the officer peered closer at Sara's face.

"Ma'am, that bruise on your face-"

"It happened yesterday. I was attacked by a pair of men and a Good Samaritan came to my aid."

"Why didn't you report that attack?"

"By the time I had finally calmed down, I figured they were gone and I knew there was nothing you could do then."

"Was it the same guy who helped you yesterday as today?"

"I'm not sure."

At least she was pretty good at lying and, of course, standing in the snow shivering probably bought her a few points as well. The two chumps were loaded into an ambulance, with a police escort, of course, and carted off. Sara talked to the officers a little longer before she asked them to follow her inside, stating she was cold. I snorted at that. By the time the police finally left her place, I felt like a block of ice and the first pangs of hunger for the day were making themselves known. It didn't help to see them walking off chewing on my cookies, regardless of how stupid their name was. The cops made another pass around the alley, but found no other evidence, so they climbed into their squad car and pulled away slowly. I waited a few more minutes before I began my climb down.

The cold wait on the roof had me limping as the muscles in my back had seized up. I hobbled to Sara's door and rapped lightly.

"Who is it?"

"Uh, Michael."

The door opened and I stumbled in and vaguely heard her locking it behind me as I stripped off my boots and all my clothes. Only one thing would help, I was pretty sure: a very hot shower.

"Are you okay?"

"Besides half frozen, I'm just peachy," I growled out and left my things in a pile behind me as I limped over to the bathroom.

I slammed the bathroom door behind me a little harder than I meant to, but heat, I needed fucking heat. I turned the temperature on the shower all the way up and rubbed my arms as I waited for the water to get warm. I yelped when I stepped in and turned the temperature down just a smidgen. Turning my back towards the spray, I let the heat soak into my shell and the muscles below it. By the time my back had un-kinked enough that I could stand straight again, the water felt barely warm. Stepping out, I grabbed a towel and as I dried off, I wondered if Sara was mad at me for dumping my crap all over the floor. Well, this had to end sometime anyway. Dry at last, I steeled myself for the worst as I opened the door.

My eyes roamed the space and I saw that the entry had been picked up. My things were either hanging from a series of hooks or placed neatly just below. Sighing, I walked out and Sara's head popped up from the fridge.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I just needed a hot shower to get the kinks out of my back. I, uh, am sorry about earlier," I said. My hand rubbed the back of my neck as I waited for her to scream something.

The color drained from her face. "Oh my god, he hit you in the back! I heard it and hoped that wasn't you on the receiving end. You need to go to the hospital! Let me call a cab!"

My mouth dropped open for a second before I bellowed, "No!"

She paused at the phone and her brows were knitted together, but before she could say anything, I took her by the elbow and dragged her away from it and towards the sofa. She sat down with her back stiff against it and her hands wound tightly together. As if she had been a puppet with her strings cut, her back slumped and her hands covered her face.

"And now they hurt you. I heard the hit, it sounded horrible. Please go to the hospital. I don't know what I would do if you were seriously hurt because of me," she said, and the tremble in her voice did something to me.

"Sara," I began, but stopped when I realized there was no way to explain that the hit, while it hurt, had not been as deadly as if I had been human.

I could have blown it off, but I was tired of the half-truths. My heart sped up as I decided to come clean with her. Even though I knew seeing fear on her face would destroy some part of me that she had built up, I had to show her the truth.

My steps were slow as I moved to sit down next to her. My eyes never left her face as I reached out with one hand and took her trembling hand in mine. It was cold, and I pressed my other hand on top of hers. Her eyes widened as her fingers touched mine and I closed my eyes and waited for the scream.

"Oh my god! You lost some fingers! What happened?"

My eyes flew up to her face as I managed to choke out, "No, that's how many I've always had."

This was not what I expected! Figuring I might as well show her everything, I pulled her hand up and brought it to my face. Her fingers ghosted across my skin as delicate as a feather and it was all I could do not to twitch away. At least there had been no fear yet, only concern and curiosity, but those I could deal with. Finally, I brought her hand down to the ridge of my shell.

"That's why, although my back aches, they didn't really hurt me that bad. I was just stiff from being on the roof for so long, so I took my time in the shower is all." My shoulders lifted and dropped unconciously as I waited for her reaction.

Her mouth formed an O and she struggled for a minute to say something. I figured she was grappling with trying to figure out what she had touched as her fingers lightly skimmed the surface. Her other hand lifted from where it rested in mine until it touched my front and her fingers danced along the hardened plate there. Her gentle touch had me sucking in my breath as I waited for her response.

"Shell?"

"Yeah, turtle."

"Well, that's good then," she said with a soft sigh, "a snail shell would be a lot harder to hide."

I laughed with relief. Her face had been clear of fear and she smiled at my laugh. The hand on my chest dropped down and she found my hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

"I understand now why you were so hesitant to explain what you meant about being different. I just thought you were badly scarred like me."

"No. You're the first person who hasn't run screaming from me and I didn't want you to react that way either."

"Thank you for trusting me."

This had gone far better than I expected, but now I had to wonder about what those chumps had said to us.

"I don't get it," I said as I stood up to pace around the room. "I mean, I can understand why they would want revenge on me, but you, you haven't done anything to them besides escape."

Her sigh was so long and drawn out that I turned to watch her face. "I was attacked before. I went to the police, but obviously, I couldn't even give a description of them. I mean they could see the bruises and damage, but they couldn't pull any usable prints and I didn't even get any hits on them, so there was no DNA under my nails. All they could do for me was to up the patrols on our street. Those guys must have been mad that they had to lay low. And my guess is that the patrols must have stopped."

"What? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I'm sorry. I really didn't think they would be back so soon, not after you beat them so quickly yesterday."

My anger threatened to rise up and swallow me. Yeah, I might have been a little mad that she hadn't said anything, but more than that, it pissed me off that even those who were supposed to be the protectors of this city had failed her.

"So, tell me why you didn't say anything. "

"I honestly thought they would wait a little while and you have such a good heart; I didn't want you to stay because you felt like you had to protect me. I wanted you to stay because it was what you wanted to do."

My mouth hung open for a moment before I shut it with a snap. That was the last thing I expected her to say. I thought she didn't say anything because she was afraid I would run - not that I would have.

"Friends?" she asked as she held out a hand. Her eyes shone with unshed tears and I realized that she was just as lonely as I was and had been afraid of rejection like just like me.

It was awkward but I managed to entwine our fingers and I gave her hand a little squeeze. "Friends."

_**~Author's note: Once more a big thank you to Mordinette and her grammar wand and another to Scribbledincrayon for her suggestions. Thanks, ladies! Another thank you to the readers and I'll give you fair warning now - with the holidays coming up and a move for me, updates are going to be a lot more sporadic.~**_


	6. Plans

Once more, I sat at the kitchen table, listening to my stomach rumble its displeasure at me. Waffles were coming, I had been promised. The scent from where Sara was working had me hoping it would be sooner rather than later, since I sat waiting at the table. With no fear of discovery looming between us anymore, the casual brush against each other made working in the kitchen together much easier. Sara hummed some tune to herself while she manned something she called a waffle iron.

"So, how do you eat these things?" I asked. Conversation was not something I had ever really had a chance to have before and I found that I liked hearing her voice.

"Butter and maple syrup, none of that fake crap," she said as she approached the table with a plate stacked with golden pockmarked bread like things.

I inhaled deeply and whatever they were, they smelled good. Sara took one and put it on her plate and I watched how she slathered it with the butter and then poured the syrup. Following her lead, I did the same. After my first bite, I decided maybe there wouldn't be enough of those things after all.

"You know, your appearance might be useful."

I snorted into my orange juice. "That would be a first."

"I'm serious. We could use the internet to maybe see if there have been any unusual sightings around the city."

The piece of waffle in my mouth caught in my throat at the use of 'we'. We - that was not something I had ever thought I would hear; it had been _I_ for far too long it seemed.

"How?"

"I've got a laptop from before and I've been paying for internet already. I've been meaning to take it in and get a screen reader installed on it, but I haven't gotten around to it. I think between the two of us we should be able to navigate the web, though."

"Wouldn't any sightings just be because of me?"

"Maybe some of them, but odds are you came from a lab and they never only have one test subject at a time. So if there were others with you and they escaped as well, maybe they were spotted."

A goddamn lab rat, err, turtle; as much as it pissed me off, she was probably right. But then I had a thought.

"That might be true, except how do you explain how I can fight?"

"What do you mean?"

"When I fought with those guys earlier, one of them changed his stance just so and I didn't have to think about it - I just did it - I disabled him with a kick to his knee. And when I was cutting the bread last night - I can twirl a blade in my fingers, can you?"

Sara shook her head. "Not even when I could see. Okay, so there goes that theory. How were you looking into your situation?"

"Whenever I got a chance, I just went back to that alley I woke up in. But that wasn't very often."

"Ever find anything?"

"Not a damn thing," I said with a sigh.

"Have you looked to see what is around that area? Maybe there is a clue there."

I chewed slowly as I thought about what she said. It was obvious my approach wasn't getting me anywhere.

"Let's try it your way. Internet and whatever else, since I haven't made any progress doing it my way."

Her smile alone was worth it, I decided, as we finished our breakfast. Her words sort of rolled over me as I watched her talk, her face animated and with a spark in her that I hadn't seen before.

"Why?"

Her mouth hung open for a moment before she replied, "What do you mean?"

"You've already given me so much. You don't need to get further involved in my problems."

"Because that's what friends do," she said and her tone let me know that she thought I was a bit of an idiot for even asking. "Now while you clean up our breakfast dishes, I'll start hunting down the stuff we need."

My eyes popped wide at that. She had always seemed to guard her kitchen from my intrusion. "Really? You'll let me loose in there?" I asked and I couldn't stop the laugh that rumbled loose in me.

"Just barely, but you know, there is that whole friend thing," she said with a grin.

Putting my hands on the table, I pushed away and began my chore. I really didn't mind. So far, it had felt as if I had mostly taken, it seemed; and I know that she thought that my protecting her was a big deal, but it wasn't to me. That just felt like the right thing to do.

Carefully stacking the dirty dishes, I carried them over to the sink. I had seen her do this enough times now that I knew what to do. The sounds of her banging around could be heard but I kept my eyes firmly on my chore. When I finished, I found her sitting at the table with her laptop. I had seen one before, from magazines, but I wasn't sure how it could help me.

I slid into the chair next to hers. The machine whirred as it came to life and finally the screen settled into a picture. I waited. For what, I wasn't sure.

"Do you see a picture of some mountains?"

"Yep, I see it. Why?"

"That's the desktop picture, it means the machine has booted up all the way."

"Alright," I said. Already I felt like I was in way over my head.

"Okay, see that device on the right side? That's a mouse and it moves the little arrow thing on the screen. You'll have to move it until the pointer is over an icon that says internet."

My hand engulfed the thing and I picked it up and moved it towards the screen, but nothing happened. A low snarl left me as I shook the stupid thing.

"It doesn't work!"

She must have heard me shaking it because her hand groped about in the air until it connected with mine and she slowly lowered it back down to the table. Her hand over mine still, she pushed the little device and I saw that stupid arrow move. When she pulled her hand away, I found I missed it. I shook my head angrily at myself. Focus, I needed to focus on what was important. A part of me insisted that her small touch had been, but I shoved it down and ignored it.

"It scoots along the table is all. Now feel how the top of the mouse depresses? Those are its buttons. Move the arrow until it is over the icon and click the left side twice."

I did as she said and a new image popped up.

"Okay."

"Good. Luckily, I always had Google as my homepage, so we are good now. Do you remember what month it was when you awoke in that alley?"

"It was hot."

"Do you remember it being hot or so hot you thought you were going to bake alive?"

"When I first awoke it was just hot, but yeah I remember where for a few days I thought I was going to be cooked out on the street."

"Do you remember only one stretch or two of that kind of hot?"

"One."

"Alright, that puts you towards the middle of August as when you awoke. Now we have a time frame to start with."

"What month is it now?" I hadn't really paid much attention to months, I was always more concerned with the actual weather.

"It's the end of November now. Do you see a blinking line in the box on the screen?"

"Yeah."

"Now type August New York tech company break-ins and hit the enter button. Uh, you do know how to read and write, right?"

"A bit - I picked it up from magazines, not sure how, but it came pretty easy to me."

"Good," she said. The tension in her shoulders melted away and I saw her smile once more.

Using one finger, I pushed down on the letters on the keyboard; however, the size of my fingers made it difficult, I found. My eyes flicked up to the screen and I growled at the gibberish that was there. She needed me to do this and I failed. I was only good at one thing, my mind snarled at me: fighting.

Growling a little, I pushed away from the table. "I can't do it! My fingers are too damn big!"

"Michael, it's okay. Trust me, I've had my own problems with laptop keyboards, everyone has. The keys are so close together that it is easy to hit more keys than you intended."

Silence surrounded us as I thought it better to avoid saying anything. My eyes tracked her as she stood up and moved to a storage bin near the TV and pulled out what appeared to be a large keyboard. Her fingers brushed along the edge of the machine until she found whatever she was looking for before she plugged it into the laptop and pulled it towards her.

"Okay, I think this keyboard is just like the one on the computer, at least I'm pretty sure it has the written letters along with the embossing for Braille. Does it?"

I slid back into my seat and gazed over at the keyboard. I could see the small bumps along with the letters, but even better, the keys were a little larger and spaced apart more.

"Yeah," I grumbled.

"Hit the backspace key to get rid of what was in there."

"Maybe it would be better if you did it -"

"I want you to know how to use this so you can do this on your own whether I'm awake or not."

"Huh?" I felt my breath hitch in my chest. What on earth did she mean?"

"This is our base of operations, so to speak," she said with a grin. "I have a spare key so you can come and go as you please while you hunt down leads."

"No! That's too much! I've taken enough!"

Her eyes narrowed at me for a second, and I braced myself for her anger. I flinched a little when her hand clutched mine. "Michael, you aren't taking, I'm _giving_."

She stood up abruptly and moved to the little row of pegs where she kept her keys. Pulling off one, she returned to the table. Grabbing my hand, she turned it over so she could lay the single key and its chain in my palm and then closed my fingers around it.

"Keep it. I'll feel better knowing you can get in if you need to. And this way you won't have to wake me up."

"Sara," I began and I tried to temper my voice so that I sounded in control when I felt anything but.

"Use it or don't, but I need to know you have a Plan B no matter what."

Her mouth was set in a grim line. To be honest, having somewhere I could escape to if needed would be a huge asset even if I didn't want to drag her into my problems.

"Fine," I grumbled and hung the key around my neck for the moment. With my new gear, life on the streets had to be easier, I thought.

"Good. Now let's get back to the search so you have an idea of where to start looking."

By the time night had fallen, I had a list of places to check out. I only hoped one of them could give me the answers I needed. Although I wondered if I would like them - if I ever found them.

_**~A/N - Once more a big thank you to Mordinette for her help and another to Scribbledincrayon for hers as well. Thank you ladies! And a thank you to the readers for their support, thank you!~**_


	7. Alone

As soon as the sun had begun to sink below the horizon, I had left Sara's place. My shape was rounder than even my new thicker coat could account for, and that would be because the woman had stuffed every pocket I had with sandwiches and bottles of water. And this coat had a lot of them, I quickly realized. I drew the line, however, at the overly large thermos of hot cocoa that she had tried to foist on me, but I had managed to grumble a thanks at least before I left. I wasn't sure what else to say, but no matter what else happened to me, I would never forget Sara or what she had done for me.

My list of sites to check out was tucked in a pocket as well. There was one thing I hadn't thought of before I left: I didn't have a clue how to find most of these places. Maybe my rush to leave had been stupid, but I had been afraid that if I didn't go right away, I might never. The novelty of a friend had a pull that was hard to resist.

I never paid much attention to street names as I had learned to navigate the city by landmarks. Now I had to wander the streets looking at names and comparing it to my list. If I were careful, my food would last a few days, hopefully. The thought of having to search dumpsters for dinner had both my stomach and my mind recoiling in disgust. Sara had spoiled me.

My eyes gazed up to the sky and the barely visible moon that hung over the skyline before I dropped them back down to look at the signs once more. Now that I knew that I had been on my own for at least three months, part of me wondered why I was even bothering to look anymore. But I knew that answer; my abilities had me wondering what I was or who I had been, and that was what drove me on. No sightings, not even ones that might have been of me, had been mentioned on any of the websites we had looked at. I was alone. Not quite, piped up that part of me that kept insisting that I should have taken Sara's offer. My finger rubbed absently at the little zippered pocket that held the key that she had given me. That simple act of finding that little bit of metal still there calmed me. I guess because it was a reminder that I wasn't really alone anymore and I had a friend to fall back to if I needed.

Shaking my head, I turned my focus back on what I was supposed to be doing: finding one of these stupid companies that might trigger a memory on my origin. At least it wasn't snowing, I thought as I walked along the sidewalk. Movement ahead of me had my eyes focusing on a small group of people that were walking along the sidewalk. The swagger in their walk and their voices had me ducking into a nearby alley - punks of one sort or another. I wasn't trying to avoid a fight, just making sure that if there was one, it was on my terms. They passed by me and I waited a few minutes before returning to the main road.

Sighing, I took out my list of addresses and glanced absently at the paper before stuffing it back in my pocket again. My feet carried me down the sidewalk as I kept watch on both signs and any others who walked in the night. At the next intersection, a name on a sign caught my eye, and I pulled out my list and confirmed it was one of the ones on it. Finally, I was getting close to one of my targets.

An hour later, I stood staring at the front of a building. This was it, but it brought back no memories for me. And I knew I was a good distance from that alley I had woken up in. As bad as I felt when I finally came to that day, I couldn't imagine that I could have traveled this far. Shaking my head, I turned down the alley that ran beside the building. Regardless of my gut feeling, I needed to check it out in order to remove it from the list.

The alley held nothing of interest, nothing to spark a memory, hell, not even a feeling. Looking up, I could see windows and a fire escape that traversed the side of the building. Perhaps a little recon would help. My legs bunched under me and I leaped up to grab the lowest rung on the ladder before scrambling up it. I peered into the first window I came to and found something that looked like a beige maze with occasional desks and computers on them. But nothing that triggered even a vague image of my past. A sigh escaped me before I continued up the ladder and gazed into each and every window I could reach.

By the time I had gained the roof, frustration had built to the point that I thought a break to eat was necessary. Searching for something that seemed impossible had me pissed off; what I wouldn't have given for an asshole to punch. Instead, I hunkered down in between two rooftop units in order to block the wind while I pulled out a sandwich. My eyes gazed out across the horizon while I ate, but nothing moved across the rooftops. That was hardly a surprise; only an idiot, like me, would be up here during the winter. I tucked the empty bag back into a pocket and took a moment to make sure the key was where I had left it before moving out to peep into more windows.

The moon had climbed high in the sky by the time I had finished checking the building as much as I could without actually breaking into it. I still had a few hours of night before I would need to seek cover and I looked around trying to decide where to go next when something caught my eye. My feet carried me towards a building proclaiming itself a tourist center, complete with maps! Finally!

The building was closed, but there were bins with fliers by one wall, along with a giant map of the city. I rifled through all the pamphlets before finally finding one that was a map. Unfolding it, I found that while it was a map, it was only marginally helpful. It was more concerned with historic buildings and tourist crap. But there were enough streets labeled that if I was lucky they might be on my list.

I trotted over to a streetlight with my prize, pulled out my list, and began comparing the two. The scuff of feet had me looking up warily. Three men walked down the street towards me and I caught one pointing in my direction before he nudged his buddy. I quickly stuffed my map and list in a pocket before tucking my hands inside as well.

"Well, well, well, what have we here? Some poor tourist out so late at night?" the nudger asked his friend.

"If you're smart, you'll keep walking," I growled out at them. I knew their type, though. They would take what I said as a challenge, but I felt I had to warn them at least.

They laughed and began to spread out, trying to surround me. My feet carried me backwards as I attempted to keep them in front of me. Not waiting, nudger decided to throw a punch to get the party started. My hand shot up and I stopped his fist and then twisted it down and around with a snap of my wrist and he went down with a squeal. His buddies closed in on me and I released him before I twisted and kicked a leg into the guy on the right, sending him sprawling backwards. The last guy threw a punch at my face but at the last second I ducked and it went whistling by me. My fist was already in motion, it connected with his face, and he cried out as blood spurted from his nose.

I wasted no time and trotted off, leaving them clutching various body parts while I disappeared down the street. Two blocks away, I finally stopped and gazed about me. The street was empty and I took advantage of that in order to check the map again. Another company for me to check was not far, at least by what the map showed me, so after memorizing the route I would need to take, I returned the map back to my pocket.

Traffic began to pick up as the night turned into early morning, and I was forced to find a secluded spot to retreat to for the day. I wedged myself in a little alcove that wasn't very comfortable, but it was the best I could do for the moment. I pulled out my next to last sandwich and contemplated devouring it, but knowing I had hours before nightfall, I carefully returned it to its pocket. With nothing better to do, I closed my eyes and let myself fall into a light doze.

The sun was high overhead when my eyes popped open. I did a quick check; no one was nearby, so that wasn't what woke me. And then it hit me. The snow had been busy melting and I was surrounded by slushy cold. Growling, I pushed as much as I could out of my little nook. The rumbling of my stomach could no longer be ignored, and I slowly chewed my sandwich and followed it with one of my waters before letting myself drift asleep. The rest of the afternoon was much the same: push the slush out and doze for a few minutes.

By the time night fell, I was thoroughly wet, cold and annoyed as hell. But I had had plenty of time during the day to study my map, and I had a route planned out to my next destination. My stride lengthened as I fought to get warm as I made for the building. As the temperature dropped, however, everything became slicker. It was official, I grumbled to myself, I fucking hated winter.

The building stood tall amongst its neighbors and I began my systematic search of it; well, peering into the windows, to be exact. Every window looked much like the previous buildings had: endless offices of one type or another. I got a sinking feeling that the more interesting rooms, rooms where experiments might have happened, where I might have come into being if Sara was right, had no windows. Sighing, I finished my exploration of this side of the building before gaining the roof. The lights of the city twinkled around me while I sat down to eat my last sandwich. I chewed slowly even though my stomach complained about the speed. I would continue searching out each of the companies that had reported a break in during the month that I appeared in that alley, but I honestly thought they would all end as the first one did a disappointment.

Tucking my trash back in my pocket, I made a decision. Sara was right; I needed a base of operations to continue doing this. And if I was completely honest with myself, I missed the warmth of her home and, well, her, dammit. My heart lighter after coming to that conclusion, I finished my lurking outside of the windows of this company before I turned my sights towards my only refuge in this city.

_**~Happy Holidays to all! I'd like to thank Mordinette for all her help and Scribbledincrayon for her suggestions - thank you ladies! And a thank you to the readers - thank you!~**_


	8. Friend

My teeth chattered as I pushed myself to go further faster. I was close to Sara's now and all I could think of was getting inside, getting warm, and oh, a really hot shower. My pace increased until I was nearly running; well, jogging with a lot of sliding, really. Her alley appeared around the next bend and I pushed my tired legs to keep going until I reached her door. I paused for a moment and made sure no one was nearby, but the area remained empty of life.

My fingers trembled as I worked the zipper for the pocket with the key. I wrapped the chain around my wrist to make sure I didn't drop it and be forced to dig through the icy slush for it. I unlocked it and stepped inside with a sigh. The TV droned with a newscast and the blanketed lump on the sofa pushed up at the sound of my steps.

"Michael?"

"Hey, Sara. Uh, that offer still open?" I asked and my voice quivered as my body decided to shiver from head to toe.

"Of course!"

She scrambled up and helped me out of my heavy, wet clothes. Her hands brushed against my own as I handed her my hoodie.

"You're freezing!"

"Snow to slush to ice; it's fucking miserable out there."

"Go get in the shower. I'll take care of this."

My smile was tired. "Thanks."

I couldn't stop the tremble that wracked my body as it tried desperately to warm itself as I stumbled towards the bathroom. My hand knocked the control knob as far as it would go towards hot. As soon as the water started to warm up, I stepped into the spray. Standing under the hot water, I decided that this was probably my most favorite thing in the world right now. Of course, I might have been a little biased. I just hoped Sara didn't need to take a shower anytime soon since I had no plans to leave until it turned too cold to bear anymore.

All too soon, it seemed that point where the water no longer felt hot enough arrived. I shut it off and reluctantly climbed out. Now that I was warmer, exhaustion hit me and I wanted nothing more than to be able to sleep for more than a few hours. My used towel was left draped over the laundry basket as I left the bathroom.

Sara jumped up at the sound of me opening the bathroom door, but seemed unsure of what to do next as she shifted from foot to foot. "Better?"

"Much. Do you mind if I crash on the sofa for a few hours?"

"No- I mean, oh, just use my bed."

My laugh was soft and before I could protest, Sara was behind me, pushing me towards where her bedroom was.

"The sofa is fine, really."

"I've got an electric blanket on my bed and thank god you aren't a real turtle."

"Uh, what?" When I looked in the mirror, I thought I looked like a giant talking turtle, granted I really didn't have anything else to compare myself to, but I definitely wasn't human.

"Ugh, I apparently can't form a coherent sentence. If you were a true reptile, as in just a turtle, you would've died out there. They can't handle sudden exposure to cold and you were so cold when you came inside."

I hadn't really thought about that. Sure, I didn't like the cold, okay, I fucking hated it, but I could function in it. I let her push me into her room and climbed into the bed. My eyes were only half-open when she showed me how to operate the blanket.

"Just turn the dial. It's off now, but spin it to the right; the further you go, the warmer it will be."

"Got it," I mumbled against her pillow.

I fiddled with the dial and finally settled it about halfway to max before closing my eyes and sighing into the heat that surrounded me. My eyes watched her leave before I closed them all the way. Of course, it didn't hurt that I was surrounded by her scent and somehow it made me feel safe.

A loud grumbling from my stomach eventually dragged me from sleep. After turning off the blanket, an invention that might be better than a hot shower, I mused to myself, I slid out of the bed. Out in the living area, the light from the TV shone across the sofa where I could see the lump that was Sara. My feet shifted under me as I tried to decide whether I should move her to her own bed, where she belonged, or not. Afraid to wake her, I left her where she was, for now.

Instead, I turned my sights on the fridge and hoped there was something leftover for me to eat. There were several containers and I opened them all, curious as to what my choices might be. A whimper from the sofa had me spinning around with the door still hanging open. The next cry was worse than the first one. Shit, Sara was having a nightmare. I've had a few of those myself and they aren't fun. The sobs that came next wrenched at some part of me and with a snarl, I shut the fridge and hurried over to the sofa. I knelt down and gently laid a hand on Sara's shoulder as I didn't want to startle any more than I had to.

"Sara, uh, wake up. You're having a nightmare," I said. It was stupid, but I didn't know what else to say to her.

I wasn't expecting her to erupt off of the sofa, her face pale with tears still rolling down her face. Shit, I was so out of my depth here. Not knowing what else to do, I took her hand in mine. Of course, I had no idea what would come next, as she flung her arms around my neck and I just barely managed to catch her and stop myself from falling onto my back onto the floor. Instead, I landed on my ass with her plastered against me. At a loss for what to do, I copied what I had seen other people do and wrapped my arms around her. Her tears rained down on me as sobs shook her body with an intensity that frightened me. I was so lost.

"Shh, you are safe now," I murmured against her hair since her head was tucked under mine, and to be honest, that was the only thing I could think to say.

Not knowing how to stop the tears, I just held her as I waited out the storm. Assholes I could pummel, but how could I help her through this, I just didn't know. I'm not sure how long we sat there, but eventually her arms dropped away from my neck and I followed her lead.

"I'm sorry," she said softly in between some sort of sad hiccupping thing she was doing.

I shrugged at first, unsure of how to answer. "It's okay. I get them sometimes, too."

That brought her face up. "Nightmares?"

"Yeah," I said and I couldn't stop the tremble that went through me at the thought of them.

"Could they be some sort of memory?" she asked as she rubbed away the tears that remained on her face.

"That would be totally fucked up if it was."

"What happens?"

My mouth opened and shut for a second. "I'll tell you mine, if you tell me yours." I grinned a little at ducking out of answering in that way, but I figured she wouldn't want to talk about hers any more than I wanted to talk about mine.

She nodded and clambered off my lap before finding her way back onto the sofa. Her hand patted at the spot next to her and with a soft sigh, I pushed up off the floor and took the spot she indicated. Well, shit, this wasn't how I thought it would go.

"It's the accident every time," she said, her words so soft I almost missed them. "Except unlike the real one, I have to watch them die and there is nothing I can do. I'm still trapped and everything hurts and I scream for them, but all I can do is stare as they melt before my eyes."

"Fuck, that's horrible!"

"I know. I actually was unconscious when they pulled me from the wreck, so I know I didn't see any of this, but it doesn't stop my mind from creating this horrible scene in my head. I haven't had one in awhile-"

I patted her shoulder, unsure of what else to do for her even though I knew I had to keep my end of the bargain. Taking a deep breath, I gazed over at her tear stained face for a moment before I closed my eyes.

"Mine is, well, something has me and I can't get away. I can't tell what it is, but I know - I know it's bad and if I don't get away I'm done for. But I can't ever get away. I usually manage to wake myself up at that point. Can't scream on the street that brings in the real animals, the ones who enjoy causing pain to others."

Her gasp at my words brought my gaze up to watch her. Sure her eyes were dead, but the rest of her face was still expressive and I could see my words shocked her.

"That's -"

"Fucked up, yeah, I know." A change in topic, that's what I needed. "Um, yeah, I don't suppose you have a map of New York?"

"A map - I don't think so. But I can get you one."

A sigh escaped me. "Good, otherwise it will take me forever to find all those buildings."

"Did you -"

"I found two. Nothing, though."

"What time is it? I can run to the store if it's late enough."

My eyes shifted over to the clock and saw that it was a little after noon. I had slept longer than I thought.

"Noon. But you need to wait until dark so I can track you easier, you know, just in case those two jerks are out already. Although the one will only be hobbling at best," I said with a little grin at that thought.

"Alright."

Her tone was such that I knew she was a little relieved that I would be watching over her. Of course, that was when my stomach once more made itself known. Its bitching brought a smile to her face. Well, that was one way to make her forget her nightmare, at least.

"Got any leftovers for a hungry turtle?"

"I'm sure I can find something for us."

A small sigh escaped me. "You don't have to go to any trouble."

Her shoulders lifted and dropped carelessly. "I need to eat as well and I'm pretty sure there is some of that pasta left over from the other night."

"Yeah, I saw it in there."

"I'll just nuke it for a moment."

"Huh?"

"Microwave - it heats things up or cooks, even. Follow me and I'll show you how to use it."

"I can eat it cold." After all, that was how most of my meals had been up to this point; one more wouldn't matter.

"Oh, no. This is easy and you can raid the fridge whenever you come in."

My eyes never left her as she walked me through the steps for the proper use of the device. The pasta reheated finally, she handed me the whole thing.

"What about you? We can share."

"I'll get something else."

I shuffled over to the table after grabbing myself a fork and sat down with my prize. Sara joined me only a few minutes later with her own container of something leftover. The TV still droned in the background, having never been turned off.

"I'm glad you came back," she said in between a few bites.

"So am I, Sara, so am I," I said. A friend was in fact the best thing, I decided.

_**~A thank you to Mordinette for all her help with her magic grammar wand and another to Scribbledincrayon for her suggestions, thank you ladies! Another thank you to the readers.~**_


End file.
